On June 3, 2020, Rare's pirate sandbox Sea of Thieves officially arrived on Steam, marking a major expansion for Xbox's PC strategy. The game had already been available on PC through the Microsoft Store, but the Steam release opened the floodgates to a far larger audience. It also arrived alongside cross-play support across Steam, Microsoft Store, Xbox One, and later Xbox Series X/S and PlayStation 5. Players could opt out of cross-play if they preferred a narrower pool, but the default vision was clear: the seas were meant to be shared.
The announcement came during a period when Xbox was aggressively bringing first-party titles to PC. Halo 2 and Halo: The Master Chief Collection had just made the jump, and Sea of Thieves was another signal that Xbox no longer treated PC as an afterthought. Rare's trailer for the Steam launch teased a year's worth of content: skeleton ships, the terrifying megalodon, immersive pirate stories, fishing, and the competitive Arena mode. For Steam users, the pitch was simple: a living pirate world with constant updates.
Why Steam Mattered in 2020
At the time, Sea of Thieves was already over two years old. The live-service model demanded retention, and Steam offered an order of magnitude more PC players than the Microsoft Store. Rare may have needed extra development time to prepare the Steam version, or the move may have been a calculated effort to boost the player count. Either way, more storefront options rarely hurt a multiplayer game. Steam's social features, community hubs, and review system gave Sea of Thieves a second wind on PC.
| Platform | Availability | Cross-Play | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steam | June 3, 2020 | Yes | Opt-out available |
| Microsoft Store | Launch | Yes | Original PC storefront |
| Xbox One | Launch | Yes | Console base |
| Xbox Series X/S | Later | Yes | Enhanced performance |
| PlayStation 5 | 2024 | Yes | Expanded the seas further |
A Sea Full of Activities
Steam players who joined in 2020 found no shortage of things to do. Rare had spent two years building out the sandbox, and the Steam version included every major update up to that point. The game offered:
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⚔️ Skeleton ships and fort raids
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🦈 The megalodon and other emergent threats
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📖 Tall Tales story missions
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🎣 Fishing and cooking
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🏆 Arena mode for competitive crews
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🌋 Volcanic islands and cursed chests
That variety helped Sea of Thieves stand out from other live-service games. It was not just a shooter or a survival game; it was a pirate fantasy playground.
Cross-play was a key part of the pitch. Steam users could sail with friends on Xbox and the Microsoft Store, and they could opt out if they wanted a more controlled environment. This flexibility was important because Sea of Thieves is best played with a crew. Solo sloops have their own charm, but the game's heart lies in shared stories—betrayals, alliances, and last-minute escapes.
From 2020 to 2026: A Pirate's Evolution
Fast forward to 2026, and Sea of Thieves is no longer just a Steam newcomer. It is a mature live-service title that has weathered content droughts, player feedback, and fierce competition. Rare has continued seasonal updates, added Safer Seas for solo and cooperative crews, introduced new tall tales, world events, and cosmetic rewards. The game also launched on PlayStation 5 in 2024, turning its cross-play ecosystem into a truly multi-platform fleet.
The Steam release in 2020 was a turning point. It proved that Xbox first-party games could thrive outside the Microsoft Store, and it gave Sea of Thieves a broader PC community. Today, Steam players sail alongside Xbox and PlayStation crews, hunting skeleton forts, fishing for rare catches, and battling megalodons. The Arena mode may have closed, but the adventure has only grown.
For new players in 2026, the barrier to entry is lower than ever. Steam frequently hosts sales, and the game's seasonal model offers a clear path for beginners. Veterans still debate the best ship type, the most efficient gold grind, and whether to trust a pirate at an outpost. That enduring conversation is exactly what Rare hoped for when it set sail on Steam.
In short, Sea of Thieves' Steam launch was more than a storefront change. It was a declaration that Xbox's biggest multiplayer worlds would live wherever PC players gathered. Six years later, the pirate game remains a testament to that strategy—and the seas are still wide open.